Helicopters face significant control challenges due to their inherent instability, making fully manual piloting extremely demanding or nearly unfeasible.
Systems like Embention’s Veronte Autopilot address this by providing either pilot assistance or fully autonomous control for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and larger manned platforms.
Regardless of the helicopter configuration—whether traditional helicopters, gyrocopters, tandem, coaxial, or tiltrotor designs—the fundamental control methods remain largely uniform. These include collective pitch, throttle, anti-torque, and cyclic pitch controls.
The Veronte Autopilot addresses the distinct challenges posed by various helicopter configurations, ensuring reliable and efficient operations.
Helicopter Control Channels
The collective pitch control adjusts the angle of all the main rotor blades simultaneously, increasing lift and drag while reducing both rotor and engine RPM. To maintain a consistent rotor RPM, the collective pitch is integrated with the throttle, automatically increasing power when the pitch is raised and decreasing it when the pitch is lowered.
Under normal operating conditions, throttle control (managed by the governor) ensures stable rotor RPM, critical for optimal performance. The Veronte Autopilot is equipped to perform the governor’s role, providing a key capability for maintaining flight stability and efficiency.
Anti-torque control is essential for counteracting the torque generated by the main rotor, which would otherwise cause the helicopter to yaw. This is achieved by adjusting the pitch of the tail rotor blades. Since torque levels vary depending on flight conditions, autopilot systems adjust anti-torque control dynamically to prevent unintended yaw.
Cyclic pitch control determines the direction of flight by tilting the rotor disc in the desired direction. The term “cyclic” refers to how each rotor blade’s pitch changes sequentially, allowing the helicopter to move in a given direction.
Autonomous Helicopter Control
Vibrations present another challenge in automating helicopter control, as they stem from the rotor system, tail rotor, engine, and transmission. These vibrations introduce noise into sensors such as the inertial measurement unit (IMU).
By using damping systems and filters, noise can be mitigated. For example, low-pass filters address high-frequency vibrations, while notch filters target noise within specific bandwidths, such as the low-frequency vibrations produced by the main rotor.
These filtering systems are integrated into Veronte Autopilot, enhancing its ability to accurately estimate attitude and improve overall performance.
Embention’s Veronte Autopilot, supported by advanced programming tools, is adaptable to a wide range of helicopter designs, offering tailored control logic to meet platform-specific and user-specific requirements.
